If I remember correctly, this is the first New Zealand film we’ve covered on this blog, and in addition, it’s also the first film of director Vincent Ward. He’s a filmmaker that I’ve always heard about, but haven’t looked into until now, so he might be showing up again once or twice more on this blog in the future. As for this film, I think it was a very interestingly crafted piece. It’s definitely within the “indie drama” realm and I can imagine that it was shown at various film festivals when it came out, but similar to the Reflecting Skin, something about the vibe and execution makes it a little more interesting than you might initially expect. It certainly drew me in more and more as it went along, but before we get into my opinion of the film, let’s have a brief summary of the plot.
The film follows a young girl nicknamed Toss who lives in a misty hill and valley area of New Zealand. Her parents and grandfather run a sheep farm, with her father often having to round up the sheep who’ve escaped. Sadly, one day, while Toss and her dad are up in the hills looking for sheep, her dad loses his grip on a cliff-side and falls to his death. His body is found and recovered by Ethan, a large, bearded man who seems to have come out of nowhere, and who the grandfather ends up hiring on as a farmhand, much to the chagrin of Toss’s mom. From this point, several story elements go on side by side: Ethan and grandpa build a large apparatus which seems to be for catching or deterring hawks, the mom starts to develop something of a relationship with Ethan (which goes up and down in fondness over the course of the film, Toss grows suspicious of Ethan (thinking that he’s some sort of demon or evil angel) and also deals with her grieving process over her father’s death, and the threat of imminent moving off the farm looms over the family (as they reluctantly planned to leave following the death of the father). As always, I don’t want to give away where the film goes, so this will probably have to be a shorter plot synopsis. I’ll try my best not to give too much away when I discuss the film.
Similar to the Reflecting Skin, Vigil is an indie drama set in a rural area that follows a kid having to deal with changes in their situation, which come in the form of a threatening figure (or at least someone who is perceived that way). In addition, they both have an odd and darkly stylized vibe that suggests a greater grandiosity to the situation, though is more likely meant to reflect the suspicion and turmoil the main character is going through. One thing that sets Vigil apart from Reflecting Skin is the rather quiet presentation that it brings forth. Reflecting Skin tended to have more discussion and explanation going on during its runtime, between the more interpretive aspects, but Vigil, for the most part, seems to just allow the viewer to glean what is being felt or conveyed more so than tell them outright. Not to say that there isn’t any discussion, but its definitely more subdued by comparison. I’d say that it, even more than Skin, made me wonder exactly what the film was trying to get across at first, or where it was going, which definitely kept me at attention and made the pay-off interesting. The film seems to mostly be about Toss dealing with her father’s death and the changes that come to her life because of it, namely that the family is planning to move away from the farm after a certain period of time and that this new farmhand Ethan, who found her dad’s body, seems to be “replacing” him. His darkly cloaked appearance and proximity to her dad’s death makes Toss think that he’s some form of evil angel or demonic presence that has come to corrupt their lives. It doesn’t help that Ethan seems to be hitting it off with Toss’s mom either, though their relationship seems rather up-and-down in terms of like and hate, and only becomes more so after a misunderstanding about Toss and Ethan’s “relationship” later in the film. To clarify, though I don’t want to spoil too much, Toss and Ethan have a talk regarding God and death, which ends up helping Toss come to terms with what happened to her dad, and seems to turn around her perception of Ethan into something more positive (for a bit, at least). However, her mother doesn’t approve of how “close” they seem to be getting and warns Ethan to stay away from her, an implication to which Ethan is offended by. The ambiguity of this dynamic between the mother, the daughter, and the “new man” makes the story both more interesting and more concerning as we’re not sure at first what way this film is trying to play this. It should be noted that there seems to be an element of coming-of-age and growing up for Toss in this film, one significant example being when Ethan cuts a lamb and sprays blood on Toss’s face. When she goes in the house to wash off, she notices her mother putting on lipstick, so when she goes to the mirror in the bathroom, she ends up smearing the blood onto her lips instead. The mom, of course, just tells her to wash it off, but its pretty clear that Toss is going through a sort of growing phase here. So, I would figure that the triangle between these three characters is meant to be more metaphorical than literal, and it ends up going in a more typical way in the end (well, “typical” to a certain extent). I think, in general, the film does a good job of letting the audience absorb the characters’ feelings and issues without them having to be told to us, or at least not overly explained. There are many scenes with little to no dialogue or speech, which is commendable to see, as it would be very easy to just let the words explain everything rather than trusting the audience to understand it through suggestion. Aiding this aspect is the rather interesting look of the film, which is rich in overlays of blue and/or green, depending on the tone of the scene. The green mostly comes from a naturalistic place, as the surrounding hill/valley area is rich in marshy grass, but the blue almost seems to come from an angelic place, or at least somewhere that isn’t entirely obvious what the source is. It could just be how the light reflects on certain scenes and into the house, or it could be something a bit more otherworldly. You see, Toss’s dad used to wear a blue head covering, probably for the cold and muggy weather, and after he died, Toss starts wearing it most all of the time. I have to wonder if the blue light is meant to represent the father in some way, or perhaps Toss’s turmoil concerning him. There is a notable scene right near the end of the film where Toss is seemingly covered in blue, both light-based and organically, which I won’t spoil for you, but it certainly seems to have some level of significance. I can’t say for sure, and perhaps it was just done as an artistic choice more than anything, but it leaves some room for thought, I feel. Before I close out, I also want to mention that I thought the setting of the film really added to the overall feel. The hill/valley area gave off this sense of being cut off from the rest of the world, with a consistent fog bank and muggy weather adding to that feeling. It’s as if Toss and her family exist in their own little world, and Ethan is an unwelcome outsider (in Toss’s opinion, anyway) who seems to alter that world forever, to the point where they must abandon it. Of course, this isn’t Ethan’s doing entirely, the dad’s death is the bigger driving force here, but I have to imagine that this sort of implication was internal by the filmmakers on some level. Anyways, the location really fits the narrative, is what I’m trying to say.
Vigil is a good little film from a first-time director. It deals with common themes, but tells them in an interesting way, as all good films should (and as all good stories should, really). I’m interested to check out more of Vincent Ward’s work, though I’ll probably wait a while before featuring another film of his on the blog. Don’t want to burn myself out or you readers either. Anyway, for now, go check out Vigil, and keep a sharp eye out for what this film has to offer.